St. Catherine of Genoa, mystic and laywoman, is also known as the "Apostle of Purgatory" and the most authoritative saint on this subject.

Her Treatise on Purgatory explores the attitude on the souls in purgatory, what they suffer, why they willingly choose to go to there, the consolations of those souls, and how, by expiating our sins in this life, we can shorten or avoid pain after.

St. Catherine said that he who purifies from faults in this present life satisfies with a penny a debt of a thousand ducats or (more than $1,000) -- and he who waits until the other life to pay his debts pays $1,000 instead of that penny!

St. Catherine tells us that the souls retains no knowledge of why they are in purgatory. At their judgment, they see why they are going to purgatory, but never again while they are there. This is for your discernment.

St. Catherine said she saw that the source of all suffering is either original sin or actual sin. God created the soul pure, simple, free from every stain, and with certain beatific instinct toward Himself, she taught.

The souls greatest pain (in purgatory) is that of loss: Once the soul has left the body, it has but one desire: to unite itself to God. The soul has seen the Face of God upon death and now grieves departure. This pain is worse than any pain or suffering on earth.

It longs to be with Him but cannot.

The Lord told St. Catherine that the soul is like gold and gold is refined of its impurities, of course, by fire.

In St. Catherines Treatise on Purgatory, she writes: "Either in this life or in the life to come, the soul that seeks union with God must be purged by 'The fiery Love of God.' The holy souls are purged of all the rust and stains of sin which they have not rid themselves in this life. The fire of purgatory is first of all The Fiery Love of God."

So it is with the holy souls who experience an interior "burning" desire and longing for God which far surpasses any earthly fire. So we rightly speak of the fire of purgatory and of its cleansing flames but they are flames of love. This is a most beautiful consolation! In Hebrews 12:29: "For our God is a consuming fire."

We are the "sparks" of His fire. And love Itself is the Fire which attacks and devours the impurities of the soul. For love is like fire, which rises ever-upward with the desire to be absorbed in the center of its sphere.

The Saint goes on to say that she has experienced these feelings in her own soul and can describe the joy which accompanies the pains of purgatory, and the consolation which the souls experience.

"My happiness is that God should be satisfied; and the greatest pain I could endure would be to be excluded from His ordinance, for I see how just and merciful it is," she wrote.

"The soul, knowing what God has appointed for it, thinks more of Gods appointment than of any outward or inward pain, no matter how dreadful; and this because God, the Author of her being, surpasses everything that can be conceived or imagined.

"The participation of God granted to the souls in purgatory keeps her so wholly taken up with His Majesty, that she can think of nothing else; everything that has to do with self passes away; the soul neither sees, or speaks, nor knows of loss or pain of its own; but all this it has perceived at the instant of passing from this life. God, who is good and great, destroys all which is of man, and purgatory purifies it.

God does not wish us to have an excessive fear of Purgatory. He wishes that our fear should be tempered by trust in His mercy, and that we should fear only to avoid sin at all cost and be roused to love, forgiveness, the sacramental life, and fervent prayer for the holy souls languishing in purgatory.

Purgatory is the glorification of Gods Mercy. We should be full of gratitude for this merciful doctrine. In Purgatory the outrage we have committed against Gods glory is really repaired by some wonderful arrangement of His Mercy.

The month of May is dedicated to Our Lady. The Hearts of Jesus and Mary are honored in June. Our earthly parents are honored as well. If our parents are living or deceased, honor them with a Holy Mass or Gregorian ones.

Remember in a special way to Offer Masses for the living and deceased victims who died in the earthquake in China and the cyclone in Myanmar. How earnest and ardent we should be to do our part not only out of natural compassion but above all, for the greater honor and glory of God!

We can still more greatly glorify Him by helping Him to release these poor prisoners of His justice, so they can go to praise Him and enjoy Him forever in Heaven.

The souls greatest pain (in purgatory) is that of loss: Once the soul has left the body, it has but one desire: to unite itself to God.

This revelation has been repeated to other saints as well. In her diary, St. Faustina also speaks of Purgatory.

Souls in Purgatory

The next night] I saw my Guardian Angel, who ordered me to follow him. In a moment I was in a misty place full of fire in which there was a great crowd of suffering souls. They were praying fervently, but to no avail, for themselves; only we can come to their aid. The flames which were burning them did not touch me at all. My Guardian Angel did not leave me for an instant. I asked these souls what their greatest suffering was. They answered me in one voice that their greatest torment was longing for God. I saw Our Lady visiting the souls in Purgatory. The souls call her "The Star of the Sea." She brings them refreshment. I wanted to talk with them some more, but my Guardian Angel beckoned me to leave. We went out of that prison of suffering. [I heard an interior voice] which said, My mercy does not want this, but justice demands it. Since that time I am in closer communion with the suffering souls. (20)

Christ suffering on the Cross merits us salvation, but we still have to bring forth “fruits worthy of repentence” as the Gospel says (Matt. 3:8). When we have died reconciled to God, but before we can bring forth those fruits, we must go through purgation.

St. Paul; Heb. 12:23 - the spirits of just men who died in godliness are “made” perfect. They do not necessarily arrive perfect. They are made perfect after their death. But those in heaven are already perfect, and those in hell can no longer be made perfect. These spirits are in purgatory.

Rev. 21:27 - nothing unclean shall enter heaven. The word unclean comes from the Greek word koinon which refers to a spiritual corruption. Even the propensity to sin is spiritually corrupt, or considered unclean, and must be purified before entering heaven.

Matthew 18:26 But that servant falling down, besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 27 And the lord of that servant being moved with pity, let him go and forgave him the debt. 28 But when that servant was gone out, he found one of his fellow servants that owed him an hundred pence: and laying hold of him, throttled him, saying: Pay what thou owest. 29 And his fellow servant falling down, besought him, saying: Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he paid the debt.

Now his fellow servants seeing what was done, were very much grieved, and they came and told their lord all that was done. 32 Then his lord called him; and said to him: Thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all the debt, because thou besoughtest me: 33 Shouldst not thou then have had compassion also on thy fellow servant, even as I had compassion on thee? 34 And his lord being angry, delivered him to the torturers until he paid all the debt. 35 So also shall my heavenly Father do to you, if you forgive not every one his brother from your hearts.

Mind you, the Reformers had good reasons for throwing doubt on the 'Romish doctrine concerning Purgatory' as that Romish doctrine had then become.....

The right view returns magnificently in Newman's DREAM. There, if I remember it rightly, the saved soul, at the very foot of the throne, begs to be taken away and cleansed. It cannot bear for a moment longer 'With its darkness to affront that light'. Religion has claimed Purgatory.

Our souls demand Purgatory, don't they? Would it not break the heart if God said to us, 'It is true, my son, that your breath smells and your rags drip with mud and slime, but we are charitable here and no one will upbraid you with these things, nor draw away from you. Enter into the joy'? Should we not reply, 'With submission, sir, and if there is no objection, I'd rather be cleaned first.' 'It may hurt, you know' - 'Even so, sir.'

I assume that the process of purification will normally involve suffering. Partly from tradition; partly because most real good that has been done me in this life has involved it. But I don't think the suffering is the purpose of the purgation. I can well believe that people neither much worse nor much better than I will suffer less than I or more. . . . The treatment given will be the one required, whether it hurts little or much.

My favourite image on this matter comes from the dentist's chair. I hope that when the tooth of life is drawn and I am 'coming round',' a voice will say, 'Rinse your mouth out with this.' This will be Purgatory. The rinsing may take longer than I can now imagine. The taste of this may be more fiery and astringent than my present sensibility could endure. But . . . it will [not] be disgusting and unhallowed."

Actually, in light of Scripture, Purgatory makes perfect sense and exemplifies God's great mercy for mankind.

"Now there is no need to pray for the dead who are in Heaven, for they are in no need; nor again for those who are in Hell, because they cannot be loosed from sins. Therefore after this life, there are some not yet loosed from sins, who can be loosed therefrom; and the like have charity, without which sins cannot be loosed, for 'charity covereth all sins' [Prov. 10:12]. Hence they will not be consigned to everlasting death, since 'he that liveth and believeth in Me, shall not die for ever' [Jn. 11:26]: nor will they obtain glory without being cleansed, because nothing unclean shall obtain it, as stated in the last chapter of the Apocalypse (verse 14). Therefore some kind of cleansing remains after this life. Further, Gregory of Nyssa [De iis qui in fide dormiunt] says: 'If one who loves and believes in Christ,' has failed to wash away his sins in this life, 'he is set free after death by the fire of Purgatory.' Therefore there remains some kind of cleansing after this life. read more

To a certain degree, this is a similar belief as the LDS. We believe that this life is the time to prepare to meet God. Our physical bodies, enshrouding our eternal spirits, give us the capacity to overcome the natural man, and bridle our souls, allowing us to overcome the temptations of the world. The body makes us better able to progress spiritually. Without it, after death, it's so much harder. That's the LDS view.

20
posted on 05/25/2008 6:34:34 PM PDT
by sevenbak
(Your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. - 1 Corinthians 2:5)

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